Course Overview
ERGT's TERSM program has been developed alongside industry experts and delivers realistic high-fidelity training in our purpose-built facilities.
Emergency Response Team Leaders will be able to maintain and enhance their ability to lead teams through diverse and rapidly evolving emergency situations, applying technical skills, critical thinking, command decision-making, and leadership under realistic operational pressures.
ERGT TERSM programs are intended for people who have already obtained the required nationally recognised training units and are using those skills regularly in their job, including leading an Emergency Response Team. This programme elevates the learner's existing skills and knowledge.
Our highly experienced trainers will bring current, frontline industry knowledge to learners, ensuring they understand not only what to do, but also why critical decisions must be made in dynamic and potentially life-threatening situations.
What sets ERGT apart is the training environment itself. Our purpose-built facilities are designed to accurately replicate the complexity, uncertainty, and operational pressures of real-world emergency response and high-risk work environments. Rather than learning in a conventional classroom setting alone, learners are immersed in realistic scenarios that challenge their technical skills, situational awareness, communication, and ability to perform under pressure. These environments have been developed over 20 years in very close partnership with industry leaders to ensure the competence is transferred back to their workplace without gaps.
Learners who cannot demonstrate baseline skills and knowledge may be unable to safely participate and may be required to complete relevant training before attending.
If you are unsure whether your experience is suitable, please contact ERGT.
Key details
Learning Objectives
- Learners will strengthen and demonstrate the capability required to effectively lead a team through complex emergency scenarios, applying existing skills in realistic, high-pressure environments aligned to industry expectations.
- Assess the nature and extent of an emergency and direct an effective team response, including task allocation and risk-based decision-making.
- Conduct pre-donning checks, operate breathing apparatus in accordance with AS/NZS 1715, and complete post-use maintenance procedures.
- Apply firefighting techniques and emergency response procedures in simulated industrial fire scenarios.
- Work safely at heights using fall prevention and fall-arrest systems in accordance with relevant safety procedures.
- Enter a confined space safely, maintain atmospheric monitoring, comply with permit requirements, and exit safely.
- Apply firefighting techniques and coordinate an emergency response in simulated industrial fire scenarios.
- Work safely at heights using fall prevention and fall-arrest systems and coordinate rescue from heights.
- Enter a confined space safely, maintain atmospheric monitoring, comply with permit requirements and exit safely.
- Perform rescue from heights using appropriate rigging, lowering and retrieval techniques.
- Extricate a casualty from a confined space, minimising further injury to the casualty and to other team members.
- Lead a team through emergency response, maintaining command, communication and role clarity under pressure, and concluding operations effectively.
Participation Requirements
Participation Requirements:
To participate fully in the program, learners should be aware of the following:
Physical Requirements:
This is a physically demanding 3-day course. Learners must be able to:
Don, wear, and operate self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) for extended periods, including in conditions of reduced visibility and elevated physical exertion.
Work safely at heights using fall-arrest and fall-restraint systems, including climbing, traversing, and performing rescue tasks while harnessed.
Enter, work within, and exit confined spaces, including spaces requiring physical manoeuvring in restricted dimensions.
Perform rescue tasks, including lifting, dragging, and extracting a casualty from a confined space or from height.
Participate in live-fire exercises in a simulated industrial environment while wearing full personal protective equipment.
Sustain a high level of physical activity across extended training sessions over three consecutive days.
Psychological Requirements:
Operate breathing apparatus and perform tasks in conditions of reduced visibility, including smoke-filled environments during live-fire exercises.
Enter and work within confined spaces, which may trigger discomfort or anxiety in learners who experience claustrophobia or enclosed-space aversion.
Work at heights while wearing full PPE and breathing apparatus, which requires focus and composure under physical and psychological load.
Perform under realistic emergency scenario conditions, including time pressure, limited communication, and the physical demands of managing a casualty.
Sustain concentration and composure across multiple high-intensity exercises over three consecutive days.
Behavioural Requirements:
Follow facilitator instructions and safety procedures precisely and at all times during practical exercises.
Maintain clear and effective communication with team members throughout all scenario-based activities.
Adhere to ERGT Australia's site safety rules and the specific safety protocols for each training discipline, including respiratory, height and confined space procedures.
Report any health, fitness, or equipment concerns to the facilitator before or immediately during a session.
Behave professionally and respectfully toward all leaners and facilitators throughout the course.
Language, Literacy, Numeracy and Digital
Learners must have basic Language, Literacy, Numeracy and Digital (LLND) skills to understand safety procedures and complete assessments. Learners must be able to access and navigate a digital device to log in and access the course materials. Support for learners is available on request. More information is available on our website under “Learner Support.”
Prior Skills & Knowledge
Training standard prerequisites:
There are no prerequisites from the training standard for this course.
ERGT Prior skills and knowledge requirements:
While there are no formal entry prerequisites for this course, however, given the course's pace and scope, it is essential that learners hold current certification in the below skill areas before enrolling.
Learners who arrive without the prior training in these disciplines may be unable to demonstrate the required performance criteria within the course timeframe.
Evidence of prior certification in each of these areas must be provided before course commencement.
Emergency Team Leadership
- PMAWHS311 Lead emergency teams
Breathing Apparatus
- MSMWHS216 Operate breathing apparatus, or
- PUAFIR207 Operate breathing apparatus open circuit
Confined Space Entry
- MSMPER205 Enter confined space, or
- RIIWHS202E Enter and work in confined spaces
Height Safety
- RIIWHS204E Work safely at heights
Firefighting and Emergency Response
- PMAWHS213 Undertake fire control and emergency rescue
Confined Space Rescue
- PUASAR025 Undertake confined space rescue
Alternatively
Prior completion of an ERGT Australia-approved skills maintenance course in the relevant areas is accepted in lieu of the above units.
What to expect
ERGT Australia's Emergency Response Team Leader Skills Maintenance course is delivered across three full days at a purpose-built safety training facility. The course is intentionally demanding in both its technical and leadership scope, reflecting the performance expectations placed on active emergency response team leaders. Each day combines classroom review of leadership responsibilities with substantial practical time across all seven disciplines, and learners should expect to spend significant portions of each day in PPE, operating equipment in realistic simulation environments while fulfilling command responsibilities.
The practical components are physically and cognitively demanding. Learners will lead and participate in breathing apparatus operations, confined space entry, height safety, and live-fire and rescue scenarios. Facilitators are experienced emergency response practitioners who will observe, assess, and debrief each scenario from both a technical and leadership perspective.
Assessment is ongoing and performance-based, covering both individual technical skills and command and coordination effectiveness. Learners who do not demonstrate the required performance criteria in any discipline may need to repeat that component before a Certificate of Currency can be issued.
Learner Support
ERGT Australia is committed to providing a training environment where every learner can engage fully and safely. The following support is available across these areas.
Physical Support
Learners with an injury, physical limitation, or health condition that may affect their ability to participate in practical exercises are encouraged to declare this at registration. ERGT Australia will work with you to identify reasonable adjustments where possible. Some practical tasks, including breathing apparatus use, confined space entry, and working at heights have non-negotiable safety requirements that cannot be modified; where this is the case, ERGT Australia will advise you clearly before the course begins. No medical certificate is required, but a health questionnaire and declaration of fitness must be completed at registration.
Psychological Support
Learners who are concerned about any of the psychological demands described above, including confined space entry, heights work, participation in live-fire scenarios, or the added pressure of maintaining leadership composure under realistic emergency conditions, are encouraged to contact ERGT Australia before enrolment. Our facilitators are experienced in supporting learners through challenging training environments, and we can discuss your concerns and explore options before the course commences. During the course, learners may speak with their facilitator at any time if they are finding a particular activity distressing. No learner will be required to continue an activity that poses a genuine risk to their psychological safety.
Cognitive Support
This course covers seven disciplines over three days, combining technical skills refreshers with the coordination and decision-making demands of the team leader role. Learners with prior operational leadership experience will consolidate their knowledge more effectively than those approaching command responsibilities fresh. To support learning across the full scope of the course, ERGT Australia delivers content progressively, establishing leadership frameworks and command communication principles early, then applying them incrementally across scenarios of increasing complexity. Facilitators introduce structured decision-making models before live exercises and conduct post-scenario debriefs to reinforce constructive lessons and address any areas where command and technical performance can be strengthened. Learners who would benefit from additional time to review a particular skill, procedure, or leadership approach are encouraged to speak with their trainer.
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